Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction ❯ The Life I Had ❯ Changes Made ( Chapter 2 )
[ P - Pre-Teen ]
By: Alliehi 
Anime/Manga: Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Adventure / Martial Arts / Romance | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 08.25.2001 | Pages: 2 | Words: 4.2K | Visits: 749 | Status: Work In Progress
Anime/Manga: Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Action / Adventure / Martial Arts / Romance | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 08.25.2001 | Pages: 2 | Words: 4.2K | Visits: 749 | Status: Work In Progress
The Life I Had
Alternative Universe Ranma 1/2
By Allie
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Ranma 1/2. I, however, do own the new characters that I made up...but then again...those characters are nobodies...
Chapter Two: Changes Made
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A woman sat on her king size bed staring at the large mirror before her. She saw a pain stricken woman that was currently heart broken. The image in front of her reflected a different person from who she was days ago. She had black hair and the brightest blue eyes ever. Her long hair was held tightly together in a bun. She wore a dark blue business suit and her skirt was a little past her knees.
A single tear made its way down her cheek, as she didn't bother to wipe it away. She mumbled emotionlessly. "What had I done wrong? What Tomo, what?" Reiko held back her urge to break down crying with difficulty. Her mind drifted back to something she had not thought about for a long time. The time that she had first met Tomo.
[Flashback]
Reiko sat eating her bentos in the hotel's lunchroom. She sat alone and no one bothered her. There was happy chatting going around as she absently noticed that her co-workers were talking about some new guy coming to work there. Bah, she thought darkly. Who cares about some stupid guy?
A dark haired man walked into the lunchroom causing several girls to stop talking as they stared dreamily at him. He smiled at the small group of girls sitting together and they all sighed. He got his lunch, a fried chicken and chow mien and paid the man at the counter. His hazel eyes scanned the room as he took notice of the girls staring at him. His eyes stopped at one table in the corner of the room. Sitting all alone was the most beautiful girl he had ever met. Her dark black hair was tied in a ponytail and she wore a business suit, although it was quite odd for her to wear pants instead of the usual skirt others wore.
Reiko noticed that the loud talking had quieted down but ignored it. She did not care for those things. She sensed a presence walking up to her and she looked to her right. She snorted in disgust as she saw that it was a male.
He stood next to her table and smiled. "May I have the pleasure of sitting with you, Mam?" He carried a plate with his meals on it and he waited for her reply.
She automatically growled. "No you don't." She looked away from him and continued eating her lunch.
He smiled taking her rude comment in stride and sat down. "Why thank you. I'm Tomo Aino, what's your name?" He set his plate on the table and stared at her.
Reiko turned her blue eyes at him and glared. "I told you to go away." Damn jerk, she thought angrily. Some people are just so thick skinned.
Tomo casually leaned against his chair and listened to the whispers circulating around the room. "So, nice to meet you too Reiko. Noticed that you were sitting alone so thought I'd might join you. Hope you don't mind."
Reiko scowled. "'Course I mind, jerk." She had to admit it though, the guy knew what to look for. Listening to the others gossip about us is the easiest way to find out what my name is. When his ever-bright smile didn't falter she got back to her meal and ignored him.
Ended up that Tomo was the new co-worker that she was getting and sadly enough, he was her new partner. Tomo would sit with her at the corner of the lunchroom every day and talk to her as if they were best friends while she would continue to ignore him. Every so often, she would say something rude that would hopefully scare him off. Nothing seemed to work.
Reiko became better known and less unpopular in the Yamada Hotel. She slowly began to enjoy his presence but she would never let him know that, of course. Every time she began to warm up to him she would stop immediately when she realized what she was doing. Many times she had to tell herself that "She was a guy dammit!" in order to clear away her feelings for him. This continued for a while, and everyone knew about the Tomo-talks-animatedly-while-Reiko-coldly-ignores-his-babble routine. Their relationship became well known throughout the entire building and the workers began to get used to their odd way of communicating. All that changed when one day..
Reiko was on her way back to her apartment and Tomo accompanied her. She tried every possible way to discourage him but nothing seem to make him change his mind once he decided to do so. Reiko liked walking from the hotel to her 'home' since she did not use any extra technology that her work did not require for her to use. Usually she would take the long way and detour into the nearby park but this time it was different. She wanted to get rid of Tomo as soon as she could so she took a short cut. She went the opposite direction and instead of a detour into the park it was one into a dark alley.
They walked into the alley for less than a minute when Reiko sensed someone nearby. She stopped causing Tomo to almost bump into her. A hideous laugh was heard as two figures stepped out of the dark. Both were dressed in leather clothes and both had ridiculous hair. Of course the main feature the two had that scared 'normal' people was that they were both huge. Not fat huge, but muscle huge. One of them, the taller one, took out a knife and smirked. "Well, well, well...look what we have here..." He openly leered at Reiko causing her blood to boil.
Tomo, however, was a different matter. He was inwardly shivering from fear and silently cursed the beautiful tomboy next to him. That idiot! Why'd she have to go and walk into this damn alley? Now we have two punks here who probably wants to take our money or kill us. Maybe even both!
The shorter one snorted and flashed a disgusted look at his partner. "Idiot! We're not here to leer at girls even though she is a babe...maybe dressed a little too boyish but hey, that doesn't cover her figure! Anyway, back to business. We want your money and we want it now. Hand it over before we do something rash." He looked at them confidently. No one could resist giving in to their demands when they were facing armed HUGE men. They obviously never met Reiko Sakura before.
Tomo panicked and tried to get his wallet out as soon as possible. Unfortunately, he tripped over his own leg and lurched forward towards the two men. He could only yell out in panic, hoping to save his face. "No! We are never going to give you anything!"
Reiko growled and was about to attack them when Tomo lurched forward at the two. The short but bulky man stared at Tomo in disbelief while his comrade snarled angrily. The taller man dashed towards Tomo and stabbed him. Tomo yelled in pain. "Arrgghh!!"
Reiko gasped and caught Tomo as he fell. Tomo weakly smiled at her. "Can't say that I didn't try to protect you.." He lost consciousness the moment he finished his sentence.
Conflicting emotions fought in her heart but she ignored them for a while. She let the emotion she was very used to take control. She glared at the two men hatefully. Standing up she growled. "YOU WILL PAY FOR THAT!!!" She let anger take control. It was undecided if Tomo being unconscious then was a good thing or a bad thing. The good thing would be the awe he would see as Reiko maimed the two. The bad thing would be the cruelty and various..ahem..harsh methods she used to punish the two. The two never knew what hit them. Or stabbed... Or maimed... Or kicked....
After the two scums slumped to the floor she turned to look at Tomo. Her eyes had changed from the cold indifference and anger she usually showed when facing him into worry. "Tomo no baka. You don't even know how to fight but you still..." She thought that he had leaped forward to protect her but what she didn't know was that he had tripped from trying to chicken out.
[End Flashback]
Well, until now that is. With her mind more cleared and self-pity not clouding her judgment she saw something that she should have never missed. "That bastard didn't jump to save me..he fell on accident!" Her eyes suddenly went from sadly blank to angrily focused. "I hadn't done anything. I was just an idiot." She said this time louder than before and with more emotion. She was angry with herself. Angry at herself for falling in love with the hypocrite Tomo. "How could I have been so blind? Was I that desperate for love that I had recklessly threw myself at him?" She laughed bitterly. "Should have known, I guess. Baka. I'm a baka alright."
She continued to berate herself for being such an idiot that she had married Tomo. She was about to wallow up in depression again when an image flashed in her mind. It was an image of a young teenage boy smiling so confidently that it bordered on conceited. His wavy black hair was tied in a pigtail and he wore a loosely tied white gi.
Her eyes flashed once again but this time instead of sadness or anger at herself it was confidence. "Why should I be angry at myself? I did nothing wrong. Nothing. He did. I am not going to go into deep depression like I did all those years ago. No way. This time, I will live on and I will live happily." She closed her hand into a fist. Determination was obvious in her eyes. "I have friends and people who care about me. I will not disappoint them." She dried the tears from her face as she smiled. It was a smile of hope. She took the pin that held her hair in a bun and let her long hair fall. Her black hair fell all the way down to her waist. "Time for some changes."
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Dan looked over the papers on the front desk. It was late evening, around nine o' clock and it was pretty slow. He lifted his head from his position and scanned the area in front of him. It was the lobby and only two or three people were lounging around either bored or waiting for somebody. He sighed. When it's busy you wish that it were slow and now that you've gotten your wish you want it to be busy again. He scolded himself. So lost in thought Dan didn't hear the light tapping of heels coming towards his way. He blinked and looked up when a smooth hand waved in front of his face. "Oh, Aino-san. Sorry about that, I was sort of out of here..hehe."
Reiko nodded. "No problem. Dan, I want to check out a deluxe room complete with room service. Finally there is a chance to use my employee's special discount card huh?"
Dan stared at the person he thought he knew in front of him. "Umm...Aino-san? If you don't mind me asking, why are you checking out a hotel room? You do have a home..." What in the world is going on? He thought. He got his first real look at his boss. She was wearing her usual business suit and short heels. Her black hair was tied in her trademark bun. The only difference was the one medium size suitcase that she held in her left hand.
The raven woman in question sighed as she heard Dan's question. It was inevitable after all, she told herself. "Let's just say that I want a vacation and time away from Tomo." Hmph, she scowled inwardly. That is one understatement! I don't want to have anything to do with that-that-that...lowlife evil lying jerk!
Dan blinked again but nodded uncertainly. "Oh, I understand." Yeah right, he yelled in his mind. I don't understand at all! He never let out a single sigh of his real thoughts; neither did Reiko for that matter. He turned away from her and took out one of the hotel keys from the large drawer. "Here you go, Aino-san."
Reiko smiled and took the key from his hand. Holding her suitcase she walked towards the elevator. She pressed the up button and waited patiently for her stop to come. A resounding ding was heard and she stepped into the elevator. The elevator was quite spacious and she smiled at the couple that walked in after her. The couple smiled back as the handsome male pressed the button for level 10. She pressed the button for her floor, 5 and leaned against the mirror behind her. As the elevator door closed she absently thought about how she had to change that 'Aino-san' part of her name.
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Reiko dropped her suitcase on her bed and observed her temporary 'home.' It was very spacious and beautifully decorated. Definitely a five star hotel's worth. She grinned and opened her suitcase. Now, she thought, let's unpack first and then shower. She did not bring much mostly because she didn't want anything that was related to the bastard. Her only belongings were several outfits, shoes, very little make up, toiletries, three new towels (eww..the thought of using the same towel as Tomo again...) and hair accessories. Even those were very little. She smiled. No worry, I'll fix that very soon. She picked out her plain blue pajamas and a towel and walked towards her bathroom. Closing the door she took off her clothes.
Her bathroom was very fancy looking. She had a huge tub with beautiful white curtains and expensive tiles on the floor. There was a large mirror and a wide place to put on her make up. She walked over to her bathtub and turned on the water. The hotel did not have a furo like some old fashioned Japanese house but she was used to it.
After drying off her hair she turned off the light. Getting into her soft bed she sighed happy as she laid down. The day's events caught up to her and she fell into deep sleep.
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Reiko whistled happily as she drove to the mall district. Parking her car in the parking lot she took her purse from the car and locked it. What should I do first? She thought. Clothes, definitely clothes. She looked at what she was wearing and wondered what ever made her buy so many of them. She was wearing a business suit like yesterdays. I have so many of them that I won't even need to do the laundry for a week just wearing them! She sighed and walked into a fashion store. "Hmm...What should I get?" She mumbled to herself. She thought about what she had and made up her mind. "I'm going to get some clothes that are totally different from what I'm wearing now. I'll buy some work clothes but less formal like what I'm wearing..or at least not like anything I'm wearing!" A teenage girl about nineteen walked over to her. She smiled and asked if she needed any help. "Yes, please. I would like to know what are your newest fashions?" The sales girl nodded and led her to the place with all the clothes she needed. Reiko thanked the girl and picked out several outfits. Taking a few she went into the dressing room. She changed into one of the clothes she picked. It was a beautiful white dress that went down to her ankle. It was sleeveless and had off white flowers. She walked out of the dressing room to look in the mirror outside.
Michelle gasped as she saw Reiko wearing the white dress. Talking softly to herself she admired the lady, "Wow...she's beautiful. She really did a job on hiding her figure with those horrible clothes!" Smiling she went and picked out several more of the latest fashion that she just knew would match Reiko.
Reiko smiled at what she saw. "I guess I haven't lost my touch with my sense of fashion. I just totally forgot about them when I was married to that jerk." She turned around as she saw the sales girl standing behind her with a bunch of outfits.
Michelle smiled broadly holding up the clothes she just picked. "I just thought that you should try these clothes. I'm sure that you will look absolutely stunning in them!" Although, she added silently, something about your hair is off. It doesn't seem like black is your natural hair color. She decided to wisely keep that to herself since she didn't want to upset her customer. Little did she know just how right on target she was.
Reiko laughed and thanked the girl, who she just found out was named Michelle thanks to her nameplate. Going back into the dressing room she tried on the clothes she just acquired. It continued with her trying on one of the outfits she got and showing it to Michelle who would tell her if it matched her or not. Usually she would just praise Reiko on how great she looked. Reiko waved good bye at Michelle as she walked out of the store. She carried tons of bags filled with clothing. Thank God I don't share a bank account with him, she thought relieved. Or else, I'd probably lose them all.
She walked around the district and noticed many things that she never looked at before. Back then she was so depressed that everything and everywhere she went was dull and bleak. Then after marrying Tomo, she had put all of her time into her work at the Yamada hotel. Everything now seemed so much more full of life and..ahh..she sighed. Life was good.
She walked by several more stores and made a silent note to go back to them after she finished her next job. She checked the map on the board in the middle of the mall. The mall was beginning to be like those in America and they had even place a map telling where the customers were and where the different stores were. There was a bright red spot that read 'You are here' and an arrow pointing to a location on the map. "Hmm..." She mumbled as she scanned it for the store she was looking for. "Aha!" She exclaimed as she found the store. She read the directions and started walking to her right.
Joe smiled and waved good bye at another one of his usual customers. Shooting the girl at the counter a handsome smile he walked back into the store. Today was kind of slow for him. The other barbers were quite busy and it was only him that didn't work hours nonstop. He sighed. A ding was heard as another customer stepped into the store. Hopefully this new person or persons would be his next customer. He smiled broadly and greeted the raven-haired woman. This is a natural beauty! He thought inwardly.
Reiko smiled at the barber and replied to his greeting. "Very nice to meet you too. I would like to do something with my hair... is there someone who is available?" She looked around and saw several barbers busy with their current customers. "I presume that you are available?"
Joe nodded and showed her to her seat. She sat down and he asked her. "So what would you like to do with your hair, Mam?"
Reiko looked straight at the mirror in front of her seeing the barber standing behind her. "I would like to get my natural hair color back so do you have something that will get this dye out of my hair?" She turned around to face...Joe. She saw his name on the nametag that all the workers had on.
Joe nodded, inwardly wondering why in the world did she dye her hair in such a boring color..black. He did not speak out loud though. "Yes we do. Hold on for a moment." He walked away from Reiko and got his working supplies.
Reiko laid back as he started to work on her hair. He was very surprised when he saw just exactly what her natural hair color was. Bright red.
Reiko heard his gasped and smiled slightly. People were always amazed at my red hair, she thought. Her smile faltered as she remembered just the reason why she dyed her hair. Guys had always hit on her due to her unique hair color. They seemed to be attracted to her fiery red hair. It had hurt, hurt a lot to be attracting guys' attentions. She couldn't do anything with her gender but she could modify her appearance. She had dyed her hair black after the first two weeks of being stuck as a girl. She also never wore anything that was close to feminine. She couldn't bear to lose even her last ounce of masculinity. So she always wore the most unfeminine clothes and was very, very violent towards any sort of romantic attraction guys had for her.
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Joe waved good bye at the former raven-haired woman. "Wow.." He whispered. "Who would have known she had red hair? Now, she looks perfect. Her natural hair color does complement her dearly. The black hair just seemed to take away some of her natural beauty..." He watched as the woman with fiery red hair walk away from the Beauty Parlor.
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At the Yamada Hotel...
Every where whispers were heard. The main topic, Reiko Aino. Dan had mentioned to a big mouth friend of his about Aino-san renting a room and to his horror, his friend had told some of the people who loved to gossip. Now everyone was talking about Aino-san, the one with the best husband and best relationship ever, and the rapidly spreading rumors were getting more and more exaggerated. At first people talked about how Aino-san had a fight with her husband and moved out. Then it went worse. Someone said that she was having an affair with someone. Another said that she was running away from her husband. It went on and on and on.
Dan sighed, his face scrunched up with worry and anxiety. Maybe it was due to waiting to see what Aino-san was going to do to him. Maybe it was due to his guilt for telling Felix, the big mouth of a jerk. Or maybe it was due to the angry daggers that Reiko's female employees were giving him. "Come on you guys, I'm sorry already! I really didn't know that Felix was going to tell everyone and that the rumors were going to get so exaggerated!"
Alex and the others did not stop glaring. The blonde woman snorted. "Sssurreee, you didn't know... it just happens that everyone in the building knows that no secret is safe with Felix...."
Dan sweated. "I was tired yesterday night, okay? I honestly was just talking out loud and Felix just happened to stand there!" His face was growing frustrated.
Alex sighed and signaled the others to stop. "Fine, but what are we going to tell Reiko? It really wasn't any of our business if she wanted a vacation or spends the night in the hotel. She is not going to be happy about this." She rubbed her temples, feeling a major migraine coming soon.
Dan sighed heavily. "I know..." Poor Aino-san, he thought sadly. What did she do to deserve this? Me and my big mouth. He sighed again.
"Did you know that sighing so much would make you old?" A familiar voice said. The two of them whirled around, expecting to find an angry Reiko. Boy were they surprised.
A beautiful flame haired woman was standing before them. Her long red hair was braided loosely. She wore a white blouse and a long blue skirt that fell down to her ankles. Her bright blue eyes were twinkling in amusement as she watched them, mouth agape. She laughed, sounding like little bells. "What's wrong with you, don't remember your boss?"
An image of Reiko flashed in their mind and it was unmistakable that the beauty before them was her. Her voice and her eyes were definitely Reiko's.
"REIKO?!?"
"AINO-SAN?!?"
End Chapter Two.
Author Notes: Yeah! Another chapter out. Sorry there wasn't much action but hopefully this will satisfy your questions and ... Amberion hopefully I explained Ranma's actions enough for you... I'm not too good at that but hopefully it's better than not trying to explain at all.. Please...review?
Alternative Universe Ranma 1/2
By Allie
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Ranma 1/2. I, however, do own the new characters that I made up...but then again...those characters are nobodies...
Chapter Two: Changes Made
+++++++++
A woman sat on her king size bed staring at the large mirror before her. She saw a pain stricken woman that was currently heart broken. The image in front of her reflected a different person from who she was days ago. She had black hair and the brightest blue eyes ever. Her long hair was held tightly together in a bun. She wore a dark blue business suit and her skirt was a little past her knees.
A single tear made its way down her cheek, as she didn't bother to wipe it away. She mumbled emotionlessly. "What had I done wrong? What Tomo, what?" Reiko held back her urge to break down crying with difficulty. Her mind drifted back to something she had not thought about for a long time. The time that she had first met Tomo.
[Flashback]
Reiko sat eating her bentos in the hotel's lunchroom. She sat alone and no one bothered her. There was happy chatting going around as she absently noticed that her co-workers were talking about some new guy coming to work there. Bah, she thought darkly. Who cares about some stupid guy?
A dark haired man walked into the lunchroom causing several girls to stop talking as they stared dreamily at him. He smiled at the small group of girls sitting together and they all sighed. He got his lunch, a fried chicken and chow mien and paid the man at the counter. His hazel eyes scanned the room as he took notice of the girls staring at him. His eyes stopped at one table in the corner of the room. Sitting all alone was the most beautiful girl he had ever met. Her dark black hair was tied in a ponytail and she wore a business suit, although it was quite odd for her to wear pants instead of the usual skirt others wore.
Reiko noticed that the loud talking had quieted down but ignored it. She did not care for those things. She sensed a presence walking up to her and she looked to her right. She snorted in disgust as she saw that it was a male.
He stood next to her table and smiled. "May I have the pleasure of sitting with you, Mam?" He carried a plate with his meals on it and he waited for her reply.
She automatically growled. "No you don't." She looked away from him and continued eating her lunch.
He smiled taking her rude comment in stride and sat down. "Why thank you. I'm Tomo Aino, what's your name?" He set his plate on the table and stared at her.
Reiko turned her blue eyes at him and glared. "I told you to go away." Damn jerk, she thought angrily. Some people are just so thick skinned.
Tomo casually leaned against his chair and listened to the whispers circulating around the room. "So, nice to meet you too Reiko. Noticed that you were sitting alone so thought I'd might join you. Hope you don't mind."
Reiko scowled. "'Course I mind, jerk." She had to admit it though, the guy knew what to look for. Listening to the others gossip about us is the easiest way to find out what my name is. When his ever-bright smile didn't falter she got back to her meal and ignored him.
Ended up that Tomo was the new co-worker that she was getting and sadly enough, he was her new partner. Tomo would sit with her at the corner of the lunchroom every day and talk to her as if they were best friends while she would continue to ignore him. Every so often, she would say something rude that would hopefully scare him off. Nothing seemed to work.
Reiko became better known and less unpopular in the Yamada Hotel. She slowly began to enjoy his presence but she would never let him know that, of course. Every time she began to warm up to him she would stop immediately when she realized what she was doing. Many times she had to tell herself that "She was a guy dammit!" in order to clear away her feelings for him. This continued for a while, and everyone knew about the Tomo-talks-animatedly-while-Reiko-coldly-ignores-his-babble routine. Their relationship became well known throughout the entire building and the workers began to get used to their odd way of communicating. All that changed when one day..
Reiko was on her way back to her apartment and Tomo accompanied her. She tried every possible way to discourage him but nothing seem to make him change his mind once he decided to do so. Reiko liked walking from the hotel to her 'home' since she did not use any extra technology that her work did not require for her to use. Usually she would take the long way and detour into the nearby park but this time it was different. She wanted to get rid of Tomo as soon as she could so she took a short cut. She went the opposite direction and instead of a detour into the park it was one into a dark alley.
They walked into the alley for less than a minute when Reiko sensed someone nearby. She stopped causing Tomo to almost bump into her. A hideous laugh was heard as two figures stepped out of the dark. Both were dressed in leather clothes and both had ridiculous hair. Of course the main feature the two had that scared 'normal' people was that they were both huge. Not fat huge, but muscle huge. One of them, the taller one, took out a knife and smirked. "Well, well, well...look what we have here..." He openly leered at Reiko causing her blood to boil.
Tomo, however, was a different matter. He was inwardly shivering from fear and silently cursed the beautiful tomboy next to him. That idiot! Why'd she have to go and walk into this damn alley? Now we have two punks here who probably wants to take our money or kill us. Maybe even both!
The shorter one snorted and flashed a disgusted look at his partner. "Idiot! We're not here to leer at girls even though she is a babe...maybe dressed a little too boyish but hey, that doesn't cover her figure! Anyway, back to business. We want your money and we want it now. Hand it over before we do something rash." He looked at them confidently. No one could resist giving in to their demands when they were facing armed HUGE men. They obviously never met Reiko Sakura before.
Tomo panicked and tried to get his wallet out as soon as possible. Unfortunately, he tripped over his own leg and lurched forward towards the two men. He could only yell out in panic, hoping to save his face. "No! We are never going to give you anything!"
Reiko growled and was about to attack them when Tomo lurched forward at the two. The short but bulky man stared at Tomo in disbelief while his comrade snarled angrily. The taller man dashed towards Tomo and stabbed him. Tomo yelled in pain. "Arrgghh!!"
Reiko gasped and caught Tomo as he fell. Tomo weakly smiled at her. "Can't say that I didn't try to protect you.." He lost consciousness the moment he finished his sentence.
Conflicting emotions fought in her heart but she ignored them for a while. She let the emotion she was very used to take control. She glared at the two men hatefully. Standing up she growled. "YOU WILL PAY FOR THAT!!!" She let anger take control. It was undecided if Tomo being unconscious then was a good thing or a bad thing. The good thing would be the awe he would see as Reiko maimed the two. The bad thing would be the cruelty and various..ahem..harsh methods she used to punish the two. The two never knew what hit them. Or stabbed... Or maimed... Or kicked....
After the two scums slumped to the floor she turned to look at Tomo. Her eyes had changed from the cold indifference and anger she usually showed when facing him into worry. "Tomo no baka. You don't even know how to fight but you still..." She thought that he had leaped forward to protect her but what she didn't know was that he had tripped from trying to chicken out.
[End Flashback]
Well, until now that is. With her mind more cleared and self-pity not clouding her judgment she saw something that she should have never missed. "That bastard didn't jump to save me..he fell on accident!" Her eyes suddenly went from sadly blank to angrily focused. "I hadn't done anything. I was just an idiot." She said this time louder than before and with more emotion. She was angry with herself. Angry at herself for falling in love with the hypocrite Tomo. "How could I have been so blind? Was I that desperate for love that I had recklessly threw myself at him?" She laughed bitterly. "Should have known, I guess. Baka. I'm a baka alright."
She continued to berate herself for being such an idiot that she had married Tomo. She was about to wallow up in depression again when an image flashed in her mind. It was an image of a young teenage boy smiling so confidently that it bordered on conceited. His wavy black hair was tied in a pigtail and he wore a loosely tied white gi.
Her eyes flashed once again but this time instead of sadness or anger at herself it was confidence. "Why should I be angry at myself? I did nothing wrong. Nothing. He did. I am not going to go into deep depression like I did all those years ago. No way. This time, I will live on and I will live happily." She closed her hand into a fist. Determination was obvious in her eyes. "I have friends and people who care about me. I will not disappoint them." She dried the tears from her face as she smiled. It was a smile of hope. She took the pin that held her hair in a bun and let her long hair fall. Her black hair fell all the way down to her waist. "Time for some changes."
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Dan looked over the papers on the front desk. It was late evening, around nine o' clock and it was pretty slow. He lifted his head from his position and scanned the area in front of him. It was the lobby and only two or three people were lounging around either bored or waiting for somebody. He sighed. When it's busy you wish that it were slow and now that you've gotten your wish you want it to be busy again. He scolded himself. So lost in thought Dan didn't hear the light tapping of heels coming towards his way. He blinked and looked up when a smooth hand waved in front of his face. "Oh, Aino-san. Sorry about that, I was sort of out of here..hehe."
Reiko nodded. "No problem. Dan, I want to check out a deluxe room complete with room service. Finally there is a chance to use my employee's special discount card huh?"
Dan stared at the person he thought he knew in front of him. "Umm...Aino-san? If you don't mind me asking, why are you checking out a hotel room? You do have a home..." What in the world is going on? He thought. He got his first real look at his boss. She was wearing her usual business suit and short heels. Her black hair was tied in her trademark bun. The only difference was the one medium size suitcase that she held in her left hand.
The raven woman in question sighed as she heard Dan's question. It was inevitable after all, she told herself. "Let's just say that I want a vacation and time away from Tomo." Hmph, she scowled inwardly. That is one understatement! I don't want to have anything to do with that-that-that...lowlife evil lying jerk!
Dan blinked again but nodded uncertainly. "Oh, I understand." Yeah right, he yelled in his mind. I don't understand at all! He never let out a single sigh of his real thoughts; neither did Reiko for that matter. He turned away from her and took out one of the hotel keys from the large drawer. "Here you go, Aino-san."
Reiko smiled and took the key from his hand. Holding her suitcase she walked towards the elevator. She pressed the up button and waited patiently for her stop to come. A resounding ding was heard and she stepped into the elevator. The elevator was quite spacious and she smiled at the couple that walked in after her. The couple smiled back as the handsome male pressed the button for level 10. She pressed the button for her floor, 5 and leaned against the mirror behind her. As the elevator door closed she absently thought about how she had to change that 'Aino-san' part of her name.
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Reiko dropped her suitcase on her bed and observed her temporary 'home.' It was very spacious and beautifully decorated. Definitely a five star hotel's worth. She grinned and opened her suitcase. Now, she thought, let's unpack first and then shower. She did not bring much mostly because she didn't want anything that was related to the bastard. Her only belongings were several outfits, shoes, very little make up, toiletries, three new towels (eww..the thought of using the same towel as Tomo again...) and hair accessories. Even those were very little. She smiled. No worry, I'll fix that very soon. She picked out her plain blue pajamas and a towel and walked towards her bathroom. Closing the door she took off her clothes.
Her bathroom was very fancy looking. She had a huge tub with beautiful white curtains and expensive tiles on the floor. There was a large mirror and a wide place to put on her make up. She walked over to her bathtub and turned on the water. The hotel did not have a furo like some old fashioned Japanese house but she was used to it.
After drying off her hair she turned off the light. Getting into her soft bed she sighed happy as she laid down. The day's events caught up to her and she fell into deep sleep.
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Reiko whistled happily as she drove to the mall district. Parking her car in the parking lot she took her purse from the car and locked it. What should I do first? She thought. Clothes, definitely clothes. She looked at what she was wearing and wondered what ever made her buy so many of them. She was wearing a business suit like yesterdays. I have so many of them that I won't even need to do the laundry for a week just wearing them! She sighed and walked into a fashion store. "Hmm...What should I get?" She mumbled to herself. She thought about what she had and made up her mind. "I'm going to get some clothes that are totally different from what I'm wearing now. I'll buy some work clothes but less formal like what I'm wearing..or at least not like anything I'm wearing!" A teenage girl about nineteen walked over to her. She smiled and asked if she needed any help. "Yes, please. I would like to know what are your newest fashions?" The sales girl nodded and led her to the place with all the clothes she needed. Reiko thanked the girl and picked out several outfits. Taking a few she went into the dressing room. She changed into one of the clothes she picked. It was a beautiful white dress that went down to her ankle. It was sleeveless and had off white flowers. She walked out of the dressing room to look in the mirror outside.
Michelle gasped as she saw Reiko wearing the white dress. Talking softly to herself she admired the lady, "Wow...she's beautiful. She really did a job on hiding her figure with those horrible clothes!" Smiling she went and picked out several more of the latest fashion that she just knew would match Reiko.
Reiko smiled at what she saw. "I guess I haven't lost my touch with my sense of fashion. I just totally forgot about them when I was married to that jerk." She turned around as she saw the sales girl standing behind her with a bunch of outfits.
Michelle smiled broadly holding up the clothes she just picked. "I just thought that you should try these clothes. I'm sure that you will look absolutely stunning in them!" Although, she added silently, something about your hair is off. It doesn't seem like black is your natural hair color. She decided to wisely keep that to herself since she didn't want to upset her customer. Little did she know just how right on target she was.
Reiko laughed and thanked the girl, who she just found out was named Michelle thanks to her nameplate. Going back into the dressing room she tried on the clothes she just acquired. It continued with her trying on one of the outfits she got and showing it to Michelle who would tell her if it matched her or not. Usually she would just praise Reiko on how great she looked. Reiko waved good bye at Michelle as she walked out of the store. She carried tons of bags filled with clothing. Thank God I don't share a bank account with him, she thought relieved. Or else, I'd probably lose them all.
She walked around the district and noticed many things that she never looked at before. Back then she was so depressed that everything and everywhere she went was dull and bleak. Then after marrying Tomo, she had put all of her time into her work at the Yamada hotel. Everything now seemed so much more full of life and..ahh..she sighed. Life was good.
She walked by several more stores and made a silent note to go back to them after she finished her next job. She checked the map on the board in the middle of the mall. The mall was beginning to be like those in America and they had even place a map telling where the customers were and where the different stores were. There was a bright red spot that read 'You are here' and an arrow pointing to a location on the map. "Hmm..." She mumbled as she scanned it for the store she was looking for. "Aha!" She exclaimed as she found the store. She read the directions and started walking to her right.
Joe smiled and waved good bye at another one of his usual customers. Shooting the girl at the counter a handsome smile he walked back into the store. Today was kind of slow for him. The other barbers were quite busy and it was only him that didn't work hours nonstop. He sighed. A ding was heard as another customer stepped into the store. Hopefully this new person or persons would be his next customer. He smiled broadly and greeted the raven-haired woman. This is a natural beauty! He thought inwardly.
Reiko smiled at the barber and replied to his greeting. "Very nice to meet you too. I would like to do something with my hair... is there someone who is available?" She looked around and saw several barbers busy with their current customers. "I presume that you are available?"
Joe nodded and showed her to her seat. She sat down and he asked her. "So what would you like to do with your hair, Mam?"
Reiko looked straight at the mirror in front of her seeing the barber standing behind her. "I would like to get my natural hair color back so do you have something that will get this dye out of my hair?" She turned around to face...Joe. She saw his name on the nametag that all the workers had on.
Joe nodded, inwardly wondering why in the world did she dye her hair in such a boring color..black. He did not speak out loud though. "Yes we do. Hold on for a moment." He walked away from Reiko and got his working supplies.
Reiko laid back as he started to work on her hair. He was very surprised when he saw just exactly what her natural hair color was. Bright red.
Reiko heard his gasped and smiled slightly. People were always amazed at my red hair, she thought. Her smile faltered as she remembered just the reason why she dyed her hair. Guys had always hit on her due to her unique hair color. They seemed to be attracted to her fiery red hair. It had hurt, hurt a lot to be attracting guys' attentions. She couldn't do anything with her gender but she could modify her appearance. She had dyed her hair black after the first two weeks of being stuck as a girl. She also never wore anything that was close to feminine. She couldn't bear to lose even her last ounce of masculinity. So she always wore the most unfeminine clothes and was very, very violent towards any sort of romantic attraction guys had for her.
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Joe waved good bye at the former raven-haired woman. "Wow.." He whispered. "Who would have known she had red hair? Now, she looks perfect. Her natural hair color does complement her dearly. The black hair just seemed to take away some of her natural beauty..." He watched as the woman with fiery red hair walk away from the Beauty Parlor.
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At the Yamada Hotel...
Every where whispers were heard. The main topic, Reiko Aino. Dan had mentioned to a big mouth friend of his about Aino-san renting a room and to his horror, his friend had told some of the people who loved to gossip. Now everyone was talking about Aino-san, the one with the best husband and best relationship ever, and the rapidly spreading rumors were getting more and more exaggerated. At first people talked about how Aino-san had a fight with her husband and moved out. Then it went worse. Someone said that she was having an affair with someone. Another said that she was running away from her husband. It went on and on and on.
Dan sighed, his face scrunched up with worry and anxiety. Maybe it was due to waiting to see what Aino-san was going to do to him. Maybe it was due to his guilt for telling Felix, the big mouth of a jerk. Or maybe it was due to the angry daggers that Reiko's female employees were giving him. "Come on you guys, I'm sorry already! I really didn't know that Felix was going to tell everyone and that the rumors were going to get so exaggerated!"
Alex and the others did not stop glaring. The blonde woman snorted. "Sssurreee, you didn't know... it just happens that everyone in the building knows that no secret is safe with Felix...."
Dan sweated. "I was tired yesterday night, okay? I honestly was just talking out loud and Felix just happened to stand there!" His face was growing frustrated.
Alex sighed and signaled the others to stop. "Fine, but what are we going to tell Reiko? It really wasn't any of our business if she wanted a vacation or spends the night in the hotel. She is not going to be happy about this." She rubbed her temples, feeling a major migraine coming soon.
Dan sighed heavily. "I know..." Poor Aino-san, he thought sadly. What did she do to deserve this? Me and my big mouth. He sighed again.
"Did you know that sighing so much would make you old?" A familiar voice said. The two of them whirled around, expecting to find an angry Reiko. Boy were they surprised.
A beautiful flame haired woman was standing before them. Her long red hair was braided loosely. She wore a white blouse and a long blue skirt that fell down to her ankles. Her bright blue eyes were twinkling in amusement as she watched them, mouth agape. She laughed, sounding like little bells. "What's wrong with you, don't remember your boss?"
An image of Reiko flashed in their mind and it was unmistakable that the beauty before them was her. Her voice and her eyes were definitely Reiko's.
"REIKO?!?"
"AINO-SAN?!?"
End Chapter Two.
Author Notes: Yeah! Another chapter out. Sorry there wasn't much action but hopefully this will satisfy your questions and ... Amberion hopefully I explained Ranma's actions enough for you... I'm not too good at that but hopefully it's better than not trying to explain at all.. Please...review?